1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driving apparatus and an automobile. More specifically the invention pertains to a driving apparatus, which includes an internal combustion engine and a torque output device to output a torque to an output shaft of the internal combustion engine, as well as to an automobile with such a driving apparatus mounted thereon.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A proposed driving apparatus includes a motor generator disposed between an internal combustion engine and a transmission (for example, JAPANESE PATENT LAID-OPEN GAZETTE No. 2-41689). At the time of starting the internal combustion engine, this driving apparatus carries out fuel injection control and ignition control based on a crank angle, which is calculated from a reference crank angle signal detected by a cylinder detection sensor attached to the internal combustion engine.
The prior art driving apparatus can not perform the fuel injection control or the ignition control until detection of the reference crank angle signal by the cylinder detection sensor. This leads to a relatively slow start of the internal combustion engine. One possible measure against such drawback allows for the fuel injection control prior to detection of the reference crank angle signal. This, however, causes poor emission.
The object of the present invention is thus to ensure a quick start of an internal combustion engine in a driving apparatus and in an automobile with the driving apparatus. The object of the invention is also to enhance the starting ability of an internal combustion engine in a driving apparatus and in an automobile with the driving apparatus.
In order to attain part of the above objects, the applicant of the invention has previously proposed a control technique of utilizing a motor generator, which drives and brakes an internal combustion engine, so as to make the internal combustion engine stop at a specific position that allows for detection of a crank angle at an early stage after a start of the internal combustion engine (JAPANESE PATENT LAID-OPEN GAZETTE No. 8-75036).
In order to achieve at least a part of the aforementioned objects, a driving apparatus and an automobile of the present invention are structured as follows.
The driving apparatus of the present invention includes: an internal combustion engine; a torque output device that outputs a torque to an output shaft of the internal combustion engine; and a controller that controls the internal combustion engine to stop operations of the internal combustion engine in response to an operation stop instruction of the internal combustion engine, while controlling operations of the torque output device on the basis of a first compression stroke at a subsequent start of the internal combustion engine as a standard, in order to make the internal combustion engine stop at a target stop position that is different from the standard by a predetermined angle.
The driving apparatus of the present invention carries out the control on the basis of the first compression stroke at the subsequent start of the internal combustion engine as the standard, in response to an operation stop instruction of the internal combustion engine, in order to make the internal combustion engine stop at a target stop position, which is different from the standard by a predetermined angle. This arrangement desirably enhances the revolving speed of the output shaft of the internal combustion engine during rotation of the predetermined angle before the first compression stroke at the subsequent start of the internal combustion engine. This effectively improves the starting ability of the internal combustion engine. Here the xe2x80x98first compression strokexe2x80x99 is an initial compression stroke at the time of starting the internal combustion engine. In a multiple-cylinder internal combustion engine, the term xe2x80x98first compression strokexe2x80x99 means a compression stroke of any cylinder that initially has the compression stroke and includes a stroke of the piston from a bottom dead center to a top dead center. The driving apparatus of the present invention may be mounted on automobiles as well as other movable bodies.
As one aspect, the driving apparatus in this present invention may further include: a rotation angle sensor that measures a rotation angle of the output shaft of the internal combustion engine, wherein the controller controls the operations of the torque output device to make the internal combustion engine stop at the target stop position, based on the rotation angle measured by the rotation angle sensor. In this case, the controller may expect a stop position of the internal combustion engine based on a variation in observed rotation angle and control the operations of the torque output device based on the expected stop position, in order to make the internal combustion engine stop at the target stop position. Further, the controller may control the operations of the torque output device, in order to make the internal combustion engine stop at the target stop position, while revolving speed of the internal combustion engine decreases to zero.
As another aspect of the driving apparatus in the present invention, the target stop position may be a specific position that is far from the first compression stroke or a specific position in a proximate compression stroke immediately before the first compression stroke at the subsequent start of the internal combustion engine. In the latter case, the target stop position may be set approximately at a top dead center of a piston in the proximate compression stroke. In these cases, the controller may control the operations of the torque output device, in order to hold the internal combustion engine at the target stop position for a predetermined time period.
As still another aspect, the driving apparatus in the present invention may include: a three-shaft power distribution and integration mechanism that has three shafts respectively linked with the output shaft of the internal combustion engine, a drive shaft, and a rotating shaft, where power input into and output from a residual one shaft among the three shaft is determined according to powers input into and output from any two shafts among the three shafts, wherein the torque output device comprises a first motor that outputs a torque to the rotating shaft, and a second motor that outputs a torque to the drive shaft. In this case, the driving apparatus in the present invention may include a rotation angle sensor that measures a rotation angle of the output shaft of the internal combustion engine, based on a rotation angle of the drive shaft and a rotation angle of the rotating shaft, wherein the controller controls the operations of the torque output device to make the internal combustion engine stop at the target stop position, based on the rotation angle measured by the rotation angle sensor. As further still another aspect of the driving apparatus in the present invention, the torque output device may include a pair-rotor motor and a drive shaft motor that outputs a torque to the drive shaft, the pair-rotor motor including a first rotor that is linked with the output shaft of the internal combustion engine and a second rotor that is linked with the drive shaft and is rotatable relative to the first rotor, where the first rotor is driven and rotated relative to the second rotor through electromagnetic actions.